[yasr_overall_rating]
The 1988 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland, killed 270 innocent people and began the new age of terrorism. Bound together in tragedy, the victim’s relatives fought for justice, only to watch it unravel for Libyan oil.
When I asked my friend whether he knew anything about the bombing of Pan Am flight 103 over Lockerbie, he shook his head. Several other (relatively) erudite friends of mine had similar reactions. This awful tragedy, which happened in 1988, failed to embed itself into the annals of U.S. history and our collective consciousness, due to political reasons Phil Furey’s debut documentary “Since: The Bombing of Pan Am Flight 103” masterfully exposes. Told mostly through the eyes of the victim’s relatives, without resorting to fancy visual embellishments or over-sentimentalizing, the film tensely and touchingly reveals the plight of those people, as they embark on a long and arduous crusade for justice.
“Since” begins with grainy images from the crash. The regularly scheduled Pan Am transatlantic flight from Frankfurt to Detroit just had its stopover in London and was on its way to New York, when the bomb exploded over Lockerbie, Scotland, killing 270 people. The town’s residents rushed to help, but their efforts were futile. “Everyone’s life hangs by a strain,” the narration laments at one point, “and in one minute, it can all be over for you.”
While the investigation led to conclusive evidence that a detonated explosive caused the crash, the reaction from the U.S. government was… muted. Neither Pan Am reps nor anyone from the State Department was present at the funerals. As one mother states, “The coffins left Lockerby with the dignity they deserved, then came to the United States and were received like garbage.” The bombing was even shockingly left out of George Bush’s inaugural speech.
Two months after the crash, the victims’ families formed an organization and had their first formal meeting at a restaurant. Their goal was simple: to determine what happened, and why there was next to no response from the government. 103 days after the tragedy, they marched on Washington. Five relatives demanded a meeting with the president; in fear of negative media portrayal, Bush agreed. This paved way to further investigation, whereby Pan Am was found willfully negligent when it came to baggage control. The relatives of the deceased pressed on, with a direct address to the U.S. government, accusing them of cold-shouldering the case. The trail led to Libya – specifically intelligence agents Abdel Basset Ali Al Megrahi and Lamen Khalifa Fhima, allegedly ordered by Muammar Gaddafi to plant the explosives.
In an “unprecedented legal arrangement,” the two fugitives were finally flown into the Netherlands to be tried under Scottish law, looking “unperturbed” as they boarded the plane (in fact, smiling and waving). Lamen Khalifa Fhima was eventually set free (still smiling and waving), while his “buddy” was sent to jail, with a sentence equaling a “month for each victim.” He eventually got prostate cancer, and after serving 8 years of life sentence, was released on compassionate grounds and allowed to return to Libya to die. Gaddafi admitted responsibility and offered almost $3 billion in compensation to the families.
The fascinating reasons for such an inexplicable act are revealed at the end; let’s just say BP, and the U.S., British and Libyan governments were involved. “Justice and law were thrown out of the window for the sake of Libyan oil,” a journalist comments, “and that disgusts me.” The Pan Am 103 investigation is still open today.
“Since” focuses on fascinating tidbits, such as the families’ disagreements over where the blame needed to be placed: some thought it was the Libyans, some the Syrians, some wanted the trial on American soil, others on Scottish… The emotional turmoil, anger and confusion, spurred by a lack of guidance or support, is cringingly evident. There are multiple searing recollections, like a mournful and bitter monologue by a long-suffering mother: “I entered a parallel universe. You are the enemy of the airline. You are the enemy of the government. You are the enemy, more than the people who created this horrible thing.”
Many other of the film’s most memorable parts come from the personal stories of the victims. A photographer, an actress, a surfer – they all had dreams and aspirations, some of which their parents decided to continue pursuing for them. Poetic testimonies from the kind residents of Lockerbie are compassionate and mournful, as opposed to the blatant disregard witnessed by the “people in charge” on the news. An incisive commentary from Special Agent Richard A. Marquise, retired lead FBI investigator on the case, brings gravitas and validity to the film.
One sequence in particular struck me. Suse, mother of one of the young victims, Alexander, is a sculptor. She comes to visit the stacked stone cairn in the field in Lockerbie where his body was found after the plane exploded, her attitude shockingly nonchalant, making one wonder whether she came to serene terms with her son’s death, or is in denial – or perhaps Suse shaped her mourning into her sculptures: a memorial which consists of all the victims in various states of distress, both beautiful and eerie. In stark contrast, another couple refuses to go to Lockerbie and face the sight of their daughter’s death.
The doc gets its main point across: as one gentleman puts it, the “Scotts cared, and… it hurts me to say that my government… didn’t care. It’s a terrible thing for me to say.” “The women of Lockerbie actually laundered every piece of clothing,” another family member muses. Those stories reveal America’s reluctance to get involved, unless it directly affects its political and economic standing. I paraphrase here a passage from the film: “There used to be honor and dignity, and now it’s all money… So long as the oil flows… and Pan Am is all but forgotten.” We’re nothing but ants, fighting a giant eagle.
While not especially mind-blowing and a tad manipulative at points (such as in the quick montage of the victim’s photos towards the end), composer Phil Furey’s first foray into filmmaking impresses. The decision to split “Since” into successive fragments, each detailing the unfurling investigation, was a clever one, as it shows the passage of time, and how memories may fade, but resolve and love burn on like embers until we die; it also makes the investigation easy to follow.
“Since: The Bombing of Pan Am Flight 103” is an important documentary, an indictment of the U.S. government, both right and left wing, and the larger political machinations that out-shadow the victims that get in the way. It focuses on the repercussions, roots and ultimate pointlessness of terrorism and the importance of sticking together in its face. Furey’s documentary especially resonates in the current times of political unrest. It’s not just about Pan Am. It’s about 9/11, and Iraq, and Katrina, and the BP oil spill, and Syria, and countless other incidents where innocents die while those responsible reign on rapaciously. It’s important to know about Pan Am 103. I’m going to tell my friends about it.
For more information about the movie please visit the Official Website
Since: The Bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 – TRAILER (2015) from SINCE 103 on Vimeo.
